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Culture

Forgetting Auschwitz

Jan 22, 2020 Ana Palacio

75 years after the liberation of the Nazi death camp at Auschwitz, anti-Semitism is again on the rise across the Western world. This trend – and the weak response to it – is a harbinger of democratic decay.

MADRID – This week, world leaders are gathering in Jerusalem to commemorate the 75th anniversary of the liberation of the Nazi death camp at Auschwitz. At a time when anti-Semitism is on the rise across the democratic world, recalling the lessons of this painful history could not be more important.

These are difficult times for liberal democracy. Institutions are under strain. Rules and norms are being challenged and, in some cases, shamelessly flouted. Societies are becoming increasingly polarized and fragmented. And the toxic “isms” of the past – ethno-nationalism, populism, anti-Semitism – are being revived.

Whereas ethno-nationalism and populism have been dominating debates for years – particularly since the Brexit referendum and US President Donald Trump’s electoral victory in 2016 – the resurgence of anti-Semitism has been less discussed. And yet the evidence of this trend is abundant – and chilling.

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Mirek Fatyga Jan 24, 2020

it is in some way amusing to see the "elites" finally beginning to recognize what we are dealing with. It is a good thing, and better late than never.

Antisemitism is a calling card of European Fascism. Muslims might be added to the mix (so called Muslim invasion), but they will play the role of Gypsies. It will be hard to replace that special role of Jews in European history, namely the Cabal that Secretly Runs the World, with Fascists defending the good, traditional, God fearing Christian society against this Cabal.

On one hand, we are witnessing an ongoing experiment which asks the following question: how much actual experience can be passed across generations through education? Or perhaps intrinsic arrogance of youth means that personal experience matters most and humans are condemned to repeat the same horrors every hundred years, or so?

There is a contributing factor here as well, which may perhaps inform this generation, when the time comes to try and pass their own experiences forward. A strategic mistake was made after WW2, likely for tactical reasons. All fault for WW2 was laid on Germany, and Fascism was equated with Hitler and with Germany. This was a gross historical falsehood. Fascism was widespread in Europe between the wars, even fashionable. Nations other than Germany collaborated in the Holocaust, though Germans do bear the brunt of the guilt for the Holocaust. The fact that western democracies were so far gone that they had to enter into an alliance with red fascism in order to defeat the brown fascism, and then confront the red kind for fifty more years in the Cold War was not helpful either. Witness the antics of Comrade Putin today, trying to rewrite history all over again.

Europe is returning to this old, dangerous, historical pattern, largely through generational amnesia.

In the era of widespread nukes this civilization may not survive the next fascist outbreak. It is good that the elites are finally developing some sense of urgency and foreboding here, particularly if more forceful action follows. Let's hope.
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j. von Hettlingen Jan 22, 2020

Ana Palacio says this January marks the 75th anniversary of the liberation of Nazi concentration camp in Auschwitz. The atorcities committed there and elsewhere must not be forgotten and the stories and memories of the Holocaust survivors must be told and preserved. While ethno-nationalism and populism had dominated public discourse especially since the Brexit referendum in June 2016 and Trump’s election in November that year, the resurgence of anti-Semitism has been swept under the rug. She says the West’s “weak response to it – is a harbinger of democratic decay,” and lays out its reasons.
The author says the Holocaust had become a fading memory over time as many of the survivors have died. “Younger generations view this singularly horrific event as yet another tragedy of history, and thus do not fully appreciate the scale or urgency of the threat anti-Semitism poses.” Another reason is “the broader erosion of democratic principles and institutions. In this sense, anti-Semitism is a canary in the coal mine, showing us just how toxic and divisive our social and political discourse has become.”
For over seven decades the European Union had been the guardian of the Continent. Its predecessor was formed after World War II with the goals of promoting peace, and “preventing the horrors of World War II from ever being repeated.” Its founders had vowed to uphold the rule of law, protect the institutions and respect human values – “a priority born from and sustained by the memory of the Holocaust.”
The author points out the EU had failed to prevent the 1995 massacre of Srebrenica from happening, which prompted Europeans to do some “soul-searching.” But the war and ethnic cleansing following the breakup of Yugoslavia, as well as the 1991 fall of the Soviet Union that led to the independence of its former satellite states, had also posed mounting challenges to the EU. The European fundamental values began to erode, since the 2004 EU eastward enlargement that admitted new members from Eastern Europe. The transition of these fledgling democracies into liberal capitalism had been a disappointment for many citizens there, who today support right-wing illiberal regimes in Budapest, Warsaw etc.
It is true that the “history of anti-Semitism in Europe is nearly as old as Europe itself. But the last 70 years have brought a remarkable respite, because of the indelible mark the Holocaust left on those who had lived through, or near, it.” Yet the 2008 global financial crisis had taken a toll on people in Eastern Europe. Having rediscovered that Jews were a convenient scapegoat for their economic woes, populists had found a bogeymen for their grievances..
Since Netanyahu came to power, the Jewish state had become an object of anathema due to his illegal settlement policies. Unlike in some European countries that have a large Muslim population, which sympathises with the Palestinians, “anti-Semitic hate crimes in America’s three largest cities (New York, Los Angeles, and Chicago) are on track to reach an 18-year high.”
Academics say, anti-Semitism is not an ethnic or racial prejudice, and it is not caused by the creation of the Jewish state or the need for scapegoats. They claim, anti-Semitism today, as in the past, is a reaction to Judaism and its distinctive values, explaining how anti-Semitism is a unique hatred (no other prejudice has been as universal, deep, or permanent), and how the Chosen People idea has spawned hatred. Non-Jewish Jews such as Marx and others had played a role in provoking anti-Jewish animosity as well. One needs much research to learn more about this complex issue.
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Marc Laventurier Jan 22, 2020

“Now it’s law: Jews have higher rights than non-Jews.”
See:https://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2018/07/israel-nation-state-law/565712/

"Gantz Vows to Annex Jordan Valley; Netanyahu Wants Sovereignty 'Without Exception"
See: https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/elections/.premium-gantz-calls-for-jordan-valley-annexation-hopes-trump-releases-peace-plan-soon-1.8432081

By now, "75 years later", the 'Jewish State' has earned whatever 'anti-semitism' naturally emerges, on ethical grounds. It would take a real zero like Derschowitz and perhaps the author to equate a principled international boycott with, say, Zyklon B. "Never forget" is their classic marketing slogan; many admirable Israeli leftists and mounting legions worldwide won't, either.
- David Altman Jan 24, 2020
  
  Mr. Laventurier,
  
  Let us consider: Today, across the globe, there are many conflicts with a religious, ethnic or international character. Yemen's civil war has killed many thousands every year, but also threatens nearly 16 MILLION with imminent starvation. Afghanistan's civil war has, just in 2019, killed 40,000 combatants and civilians. Remember, this conflict has been ongoing--and continuously killing--non-stop since the Soviet Union's days. Syria's current civil war has killed between 385,000 - 600,000 people since it started in 2011, and displaced millions--so many, in fact, that it has warped the entire fabric of the Middle East and pulled in international players from across the globe. Nigeria (Population: 201 million) has an ongoing internal insurgency by strict Islamist rebels Boko Haram--but far, far. far worse--the country is on a knife edge because of hypertension between its Christian (48% of population) and Muslim (51%) population. The bloodbath, deprivation and misery in case of a civil war would be on the level of WWII! South Sudan's civil war, at last tally, killed 400,000 people. Cameroon (Population: 25 million) is similarly on the knife edge of civil war, with the escalation of killing-and-reprisal in its early stages.
  
  And, the most feared global conflict today: The "Sunni Alliance" of Saudi Arabia, Egypt and their allies versus the (nominal) "Shia Axis" of Iran, Syria (a Sunni majority client state of Iran), (Lebanon's Shia majority internal polity) Hezbollah and their constellation of armed groups. A major conflict between these alliances would certainly draw in the U.S. and China (as China receives nearly 50% of its oil from the Middle East), and probably Russia and Turkey for good measure (the latter two would see incalculable potential geopolitical and economic advantages from intervention).
  
  Yet, you have only ever fixated on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. A geopolitical mosquito bite in comparison with these other actual and potential crises. Also noteworthy, your posts always focus on the alleged problems caused by Israel, never any merits of or facts about the Palestinians or their actual sovereignty claims. It appears as if you are focused solely on how "evil" Israelis (who are, as everyone knows, super-majority Jews).
  
  I think that your very focused, exclusive sensitivity to purported Israeli (read: Jewish) wrongs, suggests that your concerns are less humanitarian . . . and more driven by what I shall charitably call "bias."
  A new reply to this comment has been posted.
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